FIFA has clarified the circumstances surrounding a controversial penalty awarded during the 2026 FIFA World Cup clash between Qatar and Switzerland, revealing that a temporary technical issue affected the broadcast graphics shown to viewers.

The incident occurred during Switzerland's opening goal in the 1-1 draw, when a penalty was awarded in the 14th minute. The decision immediately sparked debate among fans, many of whom were left confused after the usual offside animation was not displayed during the review process.

In an official statement, FIFA confirmed that a brief technical malfunction prevented the generation of the on-screen "onside/offside" animation used for television broadcasts. However, football's governing body stressed that the issue was quickly resolved and did not impact the work of the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) team.

"During the Qatar vs. Switzerland match in the San Francisco Bay Area, a brief technical outage prevented the onside animation graphic from being generated ahead of the penalty awarded to Switzerland in the 14th minute. The issue was quickly resolved," FIFA explained.

According to the governing body, the standard VAR review process remained fully operational throughout the incident. The calibrated offside lines used by the officials showed that the attacking player was not in an offside position in either of the phases leading directly to the penalty decision.

As a result, match officials had no grounds to overturn the on-field call, and the penalty was correctly upheld under the current laws of the game.

During the Qatar vs. Switzerland match in the San Francisco Bay Area, a brief technical outage prevented the onside animation graphic from being generated ahead of the penalty awarded to Switzerland in the 14th minute. The issue was quickly resolved.

The workflow of the VAR was… pic.twitter.com/ONpWxXDPE6

— FIFA Media (@fifamedia) June 13, 2026